Take a displaced Midwestern guy, fill him full of baseball statistics, plant the seeds of Red Sox mania in him, add water, and watch it grow. We're not talking Sea Monkeys here. We're talking about living and dying with every game here on the outskirts of Red Sox Nation. Growing up in Milwaukee, we were Brewers fans, which lately is a bit like eating crackers. Sure, it'll keep you going, but there's not much joy. Out here in New England, it's passion. It's all-encompassing and probably dangerous to the psyche, but it's passion. What we'll try to do here is immerse ourselves in that passion, but also try to take a look around with a critical eye. We'll answer the question--are you a baseball purist or a stat head- with another question. Would you rather have beer or fried chicken? We'll have both, of course.